By Joel Gausten 

At 58, longtime Misfits guitarist Doyle Wolfgang Von Frankenstein has reached the age when most would consider slowing down. However, the musician and bodybuilder is in the best physical shape of his life and maintains a heavy tour schedule with his band, Doyle. Although he has never been one to waste his days lounging on the couch, he has spent the past decade honing his physique and mindset by using an increasingly popular tool: a vegan lifestyle. 

Initially introduced to animal-free living by his partner, Arch Enemy vocalist Alissa White-Gluz, Doyle has seen a considerable increase in the number of fellow musicians who have adopted the same philosophy in recent years—especially overseas. 

“If you go to festivals there, most of the food is vegan—and most of the bands are vegan.”

Away from the stage, Doyle markets his brands of animal-free hot sauce (currently sold out but soon to get a relaunch) and protein powder. In addition to engaging in vegan-centric entrepreneurialism, Doyle has been a public advocate for cruelty-free eating through his support of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). He was featured in an informative (and hilarious) PETA cooking video in 2017, and he recently did White-Gluz’s hair for a well-received PETA ad (“Put Yourself in Their Place. Go Vegan.”) that features her dressed as a mermaid caught in a net. 

Ten years after swearing off animal products, Doyle stresses—in his trademark no-B.S. way, of course—that going vegan isn’t as difficult as it may seem to a newbie. 

“It’s confusing at first because you’re always in the supermarket reading fuckin’ labels and shit and you really don’t know what’s what. But it’s pretty basic—anything without an animal in it is pretty much vegan.”

Not surprisingly, Doyle has some solid advice for anyone who’s still on the fence about removing animal cruelty from their everyday lives. 

“Get off the fence. Everybody’s biggest thing is ‘Oh, I can’t give up cheese.’ Come on, man! You can’t give up breathing—that’s about it.”

Arch Enemy's Alissa White-Gluz was featured in a new ad for PETA back in February.

PETA's Madison VonSosen reports: When Alissa White-Gluz isn’t singing in her melodic death metal band, Arch Enemy, she’s urging people not to get caught up in cruelty. Alissa joined PETA in a beautifully haunting ad to encourage people to go vegan and keep sea animals off their plate.

As Alissa said, “Every time you think you want to go eat fish, you can just choose to eat something else.”

Read more here, and watch the video below:

Doyle photo by Ryan Vezina

Alissa ad photography - © Shayan Asgharnia